Reduced Dose of Eribulin in Elderly Patients With Advanced Breast Cancer
Posted: Tuesday, October 27, 2020
A reduced dose of eribulin as first-line treatment of elderly patients with metastatic breast cancer appears to be safe and exhibited efficacy “as expected,” according to Ursula Hasler-Strub, MD, of the Cantonal Hospital of St. Gallen, Switzerland. Reportedly the first prospective study of treatment with first-line eribulin in elderly patients, data from the phase II trial were presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Virtual Congress 2020 (Abstract 345P).
The single-arm trial enrolled 77 patients aged 70 years or older with chemotherapy-naive metastatic breast cancer to receive a starting dose of eribulin mesylate at 1.1 mg/m2—lower than the standard dose of 1.4 mg/m2—on days 1 and 8 of each 3-week cycle. The median patient age was 76, and most patients (90%) had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1.
The disease control rate at 6 months was 40%, and the objective response rate was 22%; the median progression-free survival was 5.4 months, and overall survival was 16.1 months. Dose modifications were necessary in 35% of patients, with a median dose per cycle of 2.1 mg/m2.
As for safety, the main reasons for treatment discontinuation were progressive disease (57%), patient refusal (14%), and unacceptable toxicity (11%). Grade 3 and 4 neutropenia occurred in 10% and 12% of patients, respectively. Sensory neuropathy, reported in 23% of patients, was usually mild, and patient-reported neuropathy scores remained stable for at least 15 cycles.
Disclosure: All study authors reported no conflicts of interest.
